In the related art, various pieces of software (including applications) are installed in an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer (PC) that is used by the user. The user selects software that corresponds to the purpose of use, from the installed pieces of software and performs input, obtaining, and the like, of information by starting up the selected software.
There are a lot of pieces of software that have a similar function, and there may be a case where the user does not know software that corresponds to the purpose of use or a case where the user forgets the existence of the software. Given this situation, it is difficult to select appropriate software that corresponds to the purpose of use. Therefore, in the related art, there are various methods of selecting software.
For example, in the related art, there is a method of analyzing a character string of a sentence that indicates a request input by the user and selecting software that corresponds to the request. In addition, in the related art, there is a method of identifying the user by audio recognition, identifying an input word, determining software to be started up, and setting a software environment that is specific to the user. In addition, in the related art, there is a method of narrowing down optimal software by storing a description that indicates a function of each piece of software and an icon that corresponds to the software, and performing fuzzy search of the stored contents on the basis of the input of the user. In addition, in the related art, there is a method of displaying a list of recommendation software that corresponds to software that is to be first executed in an information processing apparatus of the user, and selecting software that is optimal for equipment and the user by using an equipment profile and a user profile (for example, Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication NoS. 2003-271389, 2000-99076, 11-134360, and 2010-157207).